Life is better in red

Tag Archives: bombshell

Hello everyone and welcome to a very special guest blog from one of my dearest blogging friends, Carlie, over at Bombshell. Carlie is a pinup queen, artist, and makeup extraordinaire and is here to chat with you today about achieving flawless summer skin. Be sure to check out her page for more good stuff and give it some love. Thanks a million, Carlie! ❤

How To Get Flawless Skin For Summer In Under Ten Minutes

I’m writing this post as yet another collaboration with my girl Sarah AKA Lil Red. If you haven’t seen our past collabs, definitely type in her name into my search bar and check us out. For my new subscribers who may not know this, she was the first girl I met when I started Bombshell and we’ve been great girlfriends since then. And, by the way Sarah, we must Skype again soon so we can plan you coming to visit me. hehe. (YES!!! xoxo LR)

Anyways, Sarah likes getting other bloggers to collab with her for certain topics. For example, this article I’m writing for her and I is about SUMMER, whether it’s makeup tips, the best places to go to the beach, travel, etc. which I think is a great idea and I think I’m going to be doing that more on my sites, too.

My summer topic is how to get flawless skin for summer super quickly. For this, you will need your favorite powder foundations, a Kabuki Brush, a cream concealer, possibly a brightening powder, and a waterproof setting powder. No setting spray this time. I’ll be taking you step by step along with my product recommendations for this look.

OH! ONE MORE THING, this quick way of having flawless skin isn’t only for summer. When I travel and want to do site seeing, I don’t usually want to fuss with wetting a beauty blender and applying liquid foundation and then having to set it before it creases. I save my higher end full face makeup looks for special occasions, like if I have dinner reservations at a fancy restaurant or a night on the town with my hubby.

Okay, here we go:

First step: Is to have your face washed and toned (duh) and apply a nice moisturizer that isn’t too thick and is for the day time.

Second step: Take your kabuki brush and your loose powder foundation. I love Bare Minerals loose original powder, from when Bare Minerals first launched, or their loose Matte Bare Minerals foundation powder. For my Kabuki Brush, my favorite one is also from Bare Minerals but feel free to use whatever one you want. You can find them everywhere. I just like the Bare Minerals one because it holds the powder really well because of its shape so you don’t have to use very much product.

Open the lid to your loose foundation powder, pour a little into the lid, take your kabuki brush and swirl the product onto the brush. Tap any excess and swirl and buff the powder onto your face all over. (Another reason why I like Bare Minerals, especially for summer, is because it has sunscreen in it. So, it keeps your face safe and flawless at the same time!)

Third Step: Take your concealer and touch up any imperfections, like pimples or dark circles by dotting it right on. For this, I recommend Studio Fix Concealer by MAC. After you finish concealing, take your compact or powder puff with the powder foundation and press it into the areas where you applied the concealer. Make sure not to smear the concealer.

You can use your loose foundation powder for more coverage and I recommend Studio Fix Powder Foundation Compact from MAC. After you set the concealer, take your kabuki brush and blend in a tiny bit more of your foundation powder so everything looks seamless. (That’s one of the great benefits of powder foundation, even if you mess up or have to retouch during the day, it’s so much easier than having to remove half of your face or dig through your tote for liquid foundation or setting powder.)

Now, you are done making your skin look flawless for summer! I don’t recommend setting spray with the powders because if you do need to reapply throughout the day, the areas you sprayed can leave creases and that is so not flawless!

Here are some additional tips and tricks that you can add to this routine but it’s optional. If your eyes still have dark circles underneath after you’ve already applied your concealer and powder, you can use a brightening powder for under your eyes. My go to is the “Secret Brightening Powder for Under Eyes,” by Laura Mercier. Also, if you plan on going swimming and want to make sure your easy flawless skin look will last, I recommend the Urban Decay “All Nighter” waterproof setting powder.

Hope you all enjoyed these tips, tricks, and short routine on how to get flawless summer skin in under ten minutes. xoxo Carlie

How do you achieve flawless summer skin? Which products do you swear by? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Hello! Today, we are going to hear a little something from my darling friend, Carlie, over at Bombshell on Celebrating Mabon. As you will read in this post, Mabon is a Pagan nature holiday that gives thanks to all things fall and it’s something that Carlie enjoys participating in. Carlie will also be back later on this month with more fall and Halloween fun so definitely keep it posted, because she’s awesome! ❤

Autumn is my favorite time of year for many reasons. The weather starts to get cooler, I love seeing the leaves changing beautiful colors, Halloween aka Samhain, and celebrating “Mabon”. Like Samhain, Mabon is a Pagan nature based holiday that represents the beginning of the Autumnal Equinox. It also signifies the second harvest of the calendar and promotes equality and balance. It’s a very positive time of the year where a lot of people celebrate the changing of the seasons, create their own little traditions, and enjoy nature of course. I hope you all are looking forward to the beginning of Autumn/Mabon as much as I am. This year the Autumn Equinox begins Friday, September 21st. And, if you want to celebrate Mabon in any way, it goes from September 21st to Saturday, September 29th!

How do you welcome the fall season? What is your favorite fall tradition? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Hi everyone and welcome to my darling friend, Carlie’s, post for my Salute To Summer guest bloggers series! Carlie is one of my favorite gals on the planet and I’m lucky enough to be able to FaceTime with her pretty frequently. Be sure to check out Carlie’s blog at Bombshell and give it some love! I am sure that you will enjoy her pinup princess antics just as much as I do. Now, on to Carlie’s post that will teach you how to keep your skin healthy and glowing this summer:

Summer Skin Care

It’s that time of the year again, SUMMER TIME! So when one of my truly wonderful girlfriends, Sarah (lifewithlilred), asked me to be a guest blogger for her summer series, I was all for it. For my Salute To Summer blog post, I am going to talk about how to prevent your skin from getting sun burned and damaged in the hot sun. Here are some tips to help you and your skin enjoy the summer all of the better:

1. SUNSCREEN: This should be a no brainer, but you can’t believe how many people, especially where I live in Southern California, don’t bother to wear sunscreen. Not only do a lot of them opt for lounging in the sun unprotected, but they also do tanning beds (which I refuse to ever try) and spray on tans. Sunscreen is a god send for not just my fair skin but for my girl, Sarah, who has such a gorgeous porcelain skin tone, herself!

As far as sunscreens go, I prefer a SPORTS Cream with an SPF around 50, (you can never be too careful!). They last longer and the Sports ones are waterproof. Spray sunscreens are great, too, especially when you don’t have anyone to apply sunscreen on your back! Despite how convenient spray sunscreens are, just be aware that you do have to reapply them more often than Sports waterproof sun screen.

2. MAKEUP FOR SUMMER: If you feel like you need to wear makeup while on the beach, vacation, or lounging by the pool, first of all, DON’T wear a lot of makeup. It’s not a good look. I recommend a waterproof mascara, a lip stain, and also the brand, BARE MINERALS! I have talked about Bare Minerals since it first hit the market about ten or eleven years ago when they only had the Bare Minerals store – unlike now, where you can get it at many department stores. Bare Minerals is a great makeup brand, which originally had a powdered foundation, a cheek color, and a mineral veil (which gives an air brushed finished to your foundation.). The best thing about Bare Minerals, is that they all have SPF sunscreen in them without looking greasy.

I, of course, love the MATTE coverage foundation and mineral veil. Bare Minerals now has many different products, like delicate colored shadows and formulas. But, for me, I’m old-school and like the original powdered products. Another Bare Minerals bonus, besides the sunscreen in it, is that if you find your skin really dry during the warm months, they actually make hydrating foundations and powders. Plus, the coverage is fantastic. I recommend this brand for sunscreen on the face. You can even layer the foundations over a delicate swipe of regular sunscreen, let it sit for a minute, and then apply the sunscreen powdered foundation.

3. SUMMER ACCESSORIES: Whether you are at the beach or the pool, summer accessories are a must. Bring a big umbrella to cover your beautiful skin if you’re lounging on a bench with music or a good book. A big floppy hat and oversized sunglasses can also never hurt when it comes to covering up your precious skin. Oh, and of course, don’t walk out of the house without a cover up over your bathing suit!

XOXO Carlie

Thank you so much again to the gorgeous Carlie for walking us through some Summer Skin Care tips! How do you step up your skin care game in the summer? What is your preferred sunscreen brand? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Hi everyone and happy Hump Day! My beautiful blogging BFF, Nida, from Shopaholic Blogs was kind enough to nominate lifewithlilred for its third Blogger Recognition Award! Nida is one of my dearest blogging friends and has been featured on my page quite often. You can see her most recent work in a spring themed OOTD for my Think Spring guest bloggers series. I absolutely adore Nida and I know that all of you will too, so make sure to check out her page and give it some love! Now, for the rules:

The Rules:

Thank the blogger who nominated you and provide a link to their blog.
Write a post to show your award.
Give a brief story of how your blog started.
Give two pieces of advice to new bloggers.
Select 15 other bloggers you want to give this award to.
Comment on each blog and let them know you have nominated them and provide the link to the post you created.

Because lifewithlilred has already completed this award, as seen here, I am just going to move right along to my nominations. Definitely check out the original post if you are interested in reading about the birth of my blog baby, though!

My Nominees (I am only doing three!):

Thank you again to the lovely Nida for the nomination! Love you! How did you start your blog? Who is enjoying a marg today for National Margarita Day (ME!)? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Hi everyone and welcome to the final post of my Think Spring guest bloggers series compliments of one of my darling friends, Carlie, from Bombshell. It has been such fun over the past year getting to know Carlie better and chatting over email, Facebook, and blog post comments. Carlie’s page is just as charming and lovely as she is, so please be sure to check it out and enjoy her post on ballin on a budget throughout the spring:

Springtime Style On A Budget

If you are yearning for some new spring style items to add to your wardrobe but can’t afford or don’t want to buy new clothes or accessories, here are some ways to celebrate springtime without hurting your bank account:

1.Affordable Shops – If you are wanting some new floral clothes or just a new item in spring colors, check out shops like Ross or TJMaxx. They get new cute tops, bottoms, and even shoes for each season plus have designer items with prices that are a steal. Sometimes you have to scour the clothing racks for the perfect thing but you are guaranteed to always find something that you’ll love.

2.Accessorize – You can celebrate and update your spring fashion with cute little accessories such as hair flowers, floral head bands, scarves, jewelry, and more. Stores like Claire’s or similar places carry an enormous array of cute seasonal accessories for great deals.

3.Makeup – If you don’t want to go crazy with a new wardrobe just for spring, you can celebrate the season with your makeup. This time of the year, you can find pastel and springy colored makeup like eye shadows and lipsticks in pinks, greens, and pretty shimmery colors. You don’t need to go to department stores or even Sephora if you don’t want to or are on a budget. CVS and Walgreens drugstores always have a huge selection of great quality makeup in every color that you can imagine for amazing prices.

4. Hair – If you’re interested in trying more of a punk or rocker look for spring, you can buy clip in extensions in an array of different colors almost anywhere, including online. Or you can get hair chalk, which is temporary and can be found in drugstores and beauty supply shops. You’ll definitely have your own original look for the spring, while utilizing the “it” colors like jewel floral tones and pastels.

5. DIY- If you’re an artistic or creative person, then your spring style ideas are pretty much endless. You can use your talent to make your own items and accessories with affordable supplies from places like Jo-Ann’s or other craft and fabric shops. Some examples include chokers made with silk ribbons in floral colors with cute charms or your own flower hair pieces, brooches, and corsages.

These are just a few ideas to help you create your own original look and style for the upcoming season. Let these ideas and tips inspire you. Have fun with them and have a most wonderful spring.

Love, Carlie

^^^ Thank you so much again to the pretty as a picture Carlie for sharing her tips for a budget friendly spring wardrobe with us! And, of course, thank you to all of my amazing guest bloggers who participated in my Think Spring series. How do you style for spring on a budget? What is one of your favorite DIY spring crafts? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Hiii everyone and happy Tuesday! Over the years that lifewithlilred has been up, I have been lucky enough to make some amazing Blogging BFFs that I keep in touch with pretty frequently. Thanks to email, Facebook, and commenting on each others blogs, it is easy to become fast friends with some of your readers. Today, I got a little post holiday prezzie in the mail from one of my favorites, Carlie, over at Bombshell and wanted to give her a special shout out! I love getting letters and packages in the mail so it was so fun to open this little ditty today:

Thank you so much again, Carlie, I love it! Please be sure to take a minute to check out her blog and be on the lookout for a collaboration post between the two of us coming soon! Much love. -Sarah